Let’s Un-invent the Handshake

Daily writing prompt
If you could un-invent something, what would it be?
View all responses

If you could un-invent something, what would it be?

It’s a competition and it’s awkward. Those are just two reasons I would un-invent this one thing that most people in the world consider as polite interaction.

Let’s find ourselves a time machine and travel all the way back to ancient Greece, ancient Babylon, and ancient Rome, when handshaking was practiced. Then let’s remove all memory of the first handshake! It was a form of greeting, like tipping a hat, or showing that you weren’t carrying hidden weapons.

Let’s un-invent the handshake! I’m more in favor of the courteous bow for many reasons. 

1 Handshakes reveal a power imbalance

Enough of men seizing my hand and squeezing so hard that my small fingers become crunched together in a triangular shape, reminiscent of the painful process of Chinese foot-binding. My sole impression of this person is pain. Do those men have no control over their bodies? Do they grab a sandwich with the same force as pulling a car?

I also question the intention of men who immediately twist my wrist to the side like we’re arm wrestling, so that his hand is on top as he shakes my hand. Why the gestures of dominance? Handshakes were a form of greeting, not a moment to show who’s the boss.

And on the other end of the spectrum, I feel so domineering when I shake a woman with a spaghetti grip: the kind of grip where her fingers are like limp string.

2 Handshakes are awkward

On more than one occasion, I’ve been sitting in an air-conditioned room, or just stepped in from the cold, and my hands are freezing. I can see the other person trying to look polite and calm (and not electrified) as I offer them my ice cube hand. 

Let’s not forget about the times when an introduction takes place at an awkward moment. For example, when I wash my hands in the company kitchen and a coworker introduces me to a new employee before I can find the towel. Awkward! Damp-skin handshake after I do a quick pat down on my own clothes.

Or the time you watch someone enter the room and touch door handles, sneeze and use a tissue, and grab a sticky muffin. Then the meeting starts, and handshakes are exchanged. If you’re germophobic, do you now use your handshake hand to grab a muffin from the table too?

What do you think? Do you like the handshake as a form of greeting?

Do You Think About the Future or the Past?

Daily writing prompt
Do you spend more time thinking about the future or the past? Why?
View all responses

You can tell someone’s age by how much they think about the future or the past.

I’ve noticed that teenagers and people in their twenties talk about the future as if there is a lot of time ahead of them. They have post-secondary education goals, first career-related job discussions, and first romantic relationships. They ask questions such as: How do I start my career? How do I know if he likes me? How do I know if she’s my future spouse? Where should I travel? The world seems new and they want to try things out and explore it. Sometimes they act like they are invincible. They have memories of childhood, school, and first-time life experiences.

People who have reached middle age seem to talk equally about the future and the past. They realize they shouldn’t waste what time they have left. Either they are at the peak of their career and financial stability or they plan to get there soon. Their children are grown or will be grown. They are thinking about retirement plans. Fighting the aging process themselves while taking care of aging parents. Behind them, they have more memories and years than they did in their twenties. They remember friendships and romances that didn’t work out. They’ve been to weddings and funerals. They fondly remember what it was like to be young and invincible back when they didn’t hear of so many tragedies. Most importantly, they feel empowered by their life experience.

Seniors talk about the past a lot. They reminisce about how life used to be, how much things used to cost, and all the wonderful memories of the people they had known and the places they had been over the years. Their memories are like a finished book that they can open and read. They value the preciousness of time because the chances they had to accomplish what they could are mostly behind them. Seniors in their 90s and 100s value each additional morning because they don’t know how many more of them they have remaining.

So to return to the question, “Do you spend more time thinking about the future or the past?” I think it depends on the individual, but certainly, your age affects how long the path stretches ahead of you and how far it goes behind you.

Did you enjoy this post? Consider subscribing so you don’t miss the next one!

Fear of AI and Technology Started Centuries Ago

People fear rogue robots like the Terminator (from the 1984 movie) will take over the earth and humankind if we allow technology to continue to advance. This fear has been around for a very long time, much longer than ChatGPT and robot waiters.

Long ago, there were tales of golems, a black box of evil, and a self-driving boat. Point is, the theme of creating technology that rebels has been around for a very long time.

Some myths and tales:

  • Pandora’s box: Pandora, an artificial life form, releases misery onto mankind
  • Golem of Prague: a golem that is like a robot that serves its master but later rebels and brings destruction
  • Odyssey: Odysseus gets home using a self-driving boat 

For the full article on how our fears of artificial intelligence started more than a millennia ago, check out more examples of rebellious innovations.

How to Be an Inspiration

These last two weeks of the year can be wonderful times or tough times because of the holidays. It’s a time to be with friends and family, which can be a pro or a con. Family time can be full of stressful interactions. And for those without family close by, it can be an isolating time.

For times like these, five pieces of advice are a valuable way to be an inspiration to others and make life more positive:

  1. Choose your words wisely. You raise someone up with a genuine compliment. Or you can bring them down with a two-second insult that wounds them for life.
  2. Choose your actions wisely. You can make someone’s day with a smile. Or you can add to their stress by cutting them off in traffic.
  3. Choose the proper brain food. You can load your mind and thoughts with toxic or empty thoughts by watching terrible TV and reading bad books. Or you can read books and watch movies that make you think about how you can make life better.
  4. Choose carefully how you want to spend 86, 400 seconds. That’s all the time you get each day. You’ll never get it back.
  5. Choose your priorities and set doable goals. It’s not always possible to finish everything you intend to in a day, but you can try your best and impress yourself with what you can do!